


your happiness is mine

by curediarahan



Category: Fire Emblem: The Sacred Stones
Genre: Canonical Character Death, Childhood Friends, Ephlyon Week 2020, First Meetings, Fluff and Angst, M/M, Pre-Canon, bc uh sorry but, it's cute! until its not
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-10-27
Updated: 2020-10-27
Packaged: 2021-03-08 18:22:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,736
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27231172
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/curediarahan/pseuds/curediarahan
Summary: Ephraim's favorite sound in the world is Lyon's voice.And then he heard Lyon laugh.
Relationships: Ephraim/Lyon (Fire Emblem)
Comments: 2
Kudos: 26





	your happiness is mine

**Author's Note:**

> for [EphLyon Week 2020](https://twitter.com/ephlyonweek) \- Day 1: Laughter

When Ephraim first met Lyon, he didn’t know what to make of the shy boy.

He was small and frail, preferring the company of books to lances. He excelled in all their lessons, even beating Eirika at times.

For Ephraim’s standards, Lyon was quite boring.

And yet, Ephraim was nothing but intrigued by Lyon’s presence. His magic was breathtaking to start with. Ephraim was hopeless with magic, but Lyon could easily conjure sparks with a flick of a wrist. Then there were the smaller things, the things that made up Lyon. His voice was one of those. Lyon was naturally soft-spoken, so his voice had this almost melodic tone to it. When Lyon spoke, Ephraim soaked up every word.

Ephraim immediately knew what he had to do.

He would be Lyon’s friend.

Problem was, he didn’t exactly know how to make that happen. Even more frustrating was that Eirika was already friends with Lyon. The two bonded rather quickly and could often be found studying together.

“So, I don’t know what to do!” Ephraim groaned, hitting his head on the table. His teacup’s contents splashed ever so slightly. At least he’ll have to drink less of the drink. “Lyon has to like something other than books, right?”

Eirika raised an eyebrow from across the table. “You could just ask him.”

He groaned. “That’s not how that works!”

“It is,” Eirika sipped her tea, a perfect example of etiquette. “It’s what I did.”

“Yeah, but you both like books! And studying! And magic! I don’t have anything in common with Lyon!” Ephraim was getting more frustrated by the minute. Maybe he really wasn’t meant to befriend Lyon. Eirika, who was way better at being a princess than he was being a prince.  
“If you just asked him, you’d know what else he liked. And you can talk about the things you like too! You can talk about anything! It’s not that hard.”

“Why would he care about what I like?”

Eirika sighed. “Because Lyon wants to be your friend too? Have you considered that? You know Lyon is shy. Maybe he doesn’t want to approach you first.”

Ephraim lifted his head. “Wait, he wants to be my friend?”

His sister just nodded. Ephraim’s worries immediately vanished. There was hope for him then. He’s going to be the greatest friend Lyon will ever have.

“Do you know where he is? I’ll talk to him now!” Ephraim leapt up from his chair.

“I think he’s in the library, like always.” Eirika placed a few cookies on one of the plates. “Here, take this to him too. Don’t drop it!”

Ephraim grabbed the plate. “Thanks, Eirika! You’re the best!”

He then rushed off towards the library, careful that not one crumb of his plate spilled.

\------

Just like Eirika said, Lyon was in the library reading a rather thick book. He was tucked away in the corner, next to a window that offered the perfect amount of sunlight. His eyebrows were scrunched and every so often, he’d brush back a strand of his long hair.

Ephraim would feel bad about disturbing him if the sight of Lyon didn’t fill him with happiness.

“Lyon! I brought you a snack!”

The other prince looked up, blinking in surprise. “Prince Ephraim?”

Ephraim grinned, placing the plate of snacks on the table. “Just Ephraim is fine! I hope you like these kinds of cookies.”

“I, um, yes I do,” Lyon set his book down, his face reddening. “Would you...like to share with me?"

Ephraim's eyes brightened. "Of course, I would!"

He took a seat next to Lyon, nabbing one of the cookies. These weren't his personal favorite, finding them too dry compared to cakes and pastries, but he didn't care. Lyon liked them.

He watched as Lyon nibbled one of the cookies, the other boy staring down at the table. The way he ate reminded him of the squirrels Ephraim saw in the garden. The thought made him smile.

His eyes then caught the cover of the book Lyon was reading. On the front was an elaborate array of weapons surrounding a familiar suit of arms.

Ephraim quickly ate the rest of his cookie before tugging Lyon's sleeve. "Hey, what are you reading?"

Lyon continued to avoid eye contact. "Oh, it's a history on weapons found in Renais. I thought it would be interesting to learn about."

Ephraim gasped. "That sounds amazing! I never knew there were cool books like that."

"Yes, it even includes legends associated with them…" Lyon finally looked up. Up close, Ephraim could see how pretty his purple eyes were. "If you want, um, we can read them together?"

"I’d love to read them together!" Ephraim beamed. Finally, he gets to spend time with Lyon! And be his friend!

With a shy smile of his own, Lyon began to read.

\------

  
It was easy to get lost in Lyon's voice.

Ephraim never liked books that much. What use was there in reading about fairy tales when he could just pretend he's a knight instead? But with Lyon reading, he could understand the appeal of books.

While he always thought Lyon's voice was nice to listen to, he never got to hear him for long periods of time. Now, Ephraim almost felt spoiled. Lyon was good at reading, adding emotion to all the right parts. The historical bits became exciting, an achievement considering the information was so dull. He’s always admired the twin weapons Sieglinde and Siegmund, but the new information made them even more special.

Ephraim even learned about Grado’s own sacred weapons.

“You get an axe?!” Ephraim may favor lances, but the idea of a sacred axe was exciting. “Do you think I could hold it one day? I’m not allowed to hold Siegmund, but I want to hold, uh, G...Gorm?”

“Garm,” Lyon corrected smoothly. Talking about history made Lyon more confident and Ephraim loved every second of it. “We’re not going to war any time soon. I don’t think you’ll be allowed to just hold it.”

“Oh, come on! I bet you just have to convince your dad. It can’t be that hard! Or we can break in! You could break all the magical seals-”

“Ephraim, no, it’s not that simple!”

Time passed. The two talked and read, Ephraim learning more about history than he ever did from his tutors.  
It was only when Lyon stopped to clear his throat that Ephraim realized the sun had begun to set.

They've been here for an entire afternoon, just reading.

Lyon really was amazing.

"That took longer than expected," Lyon closed the book. A part of Ephraim felt a tinge of disappointment. "I think we should stop there."

"Lyon, you're the best at reading!" Ephraim was still awed by his skill. "I think I'll have to do all my studying with you from now on."

"Really?" Lyon stammered. "It's not that impressive."

"You make me focus! I hate focusing on books. Not even Eirika can make me read!" Before Ephraim could continue, his growling stomach interrupted the conversation. He scratched the back of his head, embarrassed. "Oh whoops. Guess we should go get dinner, huh?"

Ephraim began to walk towards the door, though he kept looking back at Lyon. "C'mon! I think I heard the chefs talking about the stew they're going to make and it's one of my favorites, you'll love-"  
His foot bumped a pile of books and without warning, Ephraim fell over with a yelp. The books tumbled down, a few landing on him. Luckily, he wasn't too hurt, but books, really? Ephraim tried hard not to pout. If he keeps embarrassing himself in front of Lyon, then-

There was a laugh. A sweet sound, light and beautiful.

Ephraim looked up to see Lyon covering his mouth.

If Lyon's voice was melodic, then his laughter was a song, no matter how short it was.

Mesmerized, Ephraim didn't even realize Lyon was offering his hand. He took it, surprised to feel how soft it was. Ephraim's own hands would often get scrapes and cuts from his adventures in the garden.

"Ephraim, I'm sorry, it's not very nice of me to laugh," Lyon helped him up, worry now etched on his face. "I didn't mean to be so rude…"

"No, no, you're fine, I run into things all the time!" Ephraim didn't know what else to say. He wanted to hear more of Lyon's laugh, not apologies.

Lyon looked relieved from his words at least. "I'm glad. Um, we better go to dinner now, I suppose."

Ephraim nodded. "Let's!"

The two were still holding hands as they left the library.

\------

As they walked the halls together, Ephraim made a promise to himself. He would do whatever he could to make Lyon happy, to see his smiles, to hear any traces of his dazzling laughter.

  
\------

From then on, it was surprisingly easy to hear Lyon's laughter. Ephraim often made a fool of himself from tripping over the oddest objects. Lyon would then laugh, a gentle chuckle, and help him every time.

Once, Ephraim jokingly asked him what was so funny about him falling on his face. And Lyon, sweet kind-hearted Lyon, replied, “I think it’s wonderful to see how passionate you are.”

The two of them both stumbled on their feet that day.

Ephraim would chase after Lyon’s happiness in other ways too. He joked after particularly hard lectures. He bought books he knew Lyon would enjoy. He even brought him meals, which were especially helpful when Lyon would study the night away.

Making Lyon happy was easy. It was a natural part of Ephraim, just like breathing was.

And yet, despite everything, Lyon's happiness began to fade away. His laughter was softer, his smiles more subdued.

Soon, Ephraim never got to see Lyon at all.

Until…

"Lyon..." Ephraim's breath hitched as Lyon began to drift away. He held his body tighter, careful to not harm him any further. "Wait! Don't close your eyes!"

He brushed Lyon's hair away from his face. "I'm going to save you, alright? I'll find a way. Please, Lyon, I…"

And Lyon laughed, a small, breathy sound. "Oh, Ephraim, don't. Thanks, anyway. It was all my fault, wasn't it? Don't...Don't look so sad."

Lyon coughed, blood dripping down his mouth.

"C'mon, Ephraim, smile. Like you used to…."

Lyon closed his eyes. He was smiling, a tiny, fragile thing, the last fragment of Ephraim's happiness.

**Author's Note:**

> follow me at [@dazzletine](https://twitter.com/dazzletine) and cry about ephlyon with me <3


End file.
